Creighton University
Providence
#8 Men's Soccer Welcomes Providence To Morrison Stadium For Matchup Of BIG EAST's Bests
10/18/2018 3:40:00 PM | Men's Soccer
The Bluejays end the regular season with three out of four matches at home
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Creighton resumes BIG EAST play with a matchup against Providence on Saturday night at Morrison Stadium. The Bluejays lead the league with 15 points, while the Friars are in second place with 12.Â
Follow the Match
Saturday's match will be broadcast on the BIG EAST Digital Network (BEDN), which can be found at FOXSportsGo.com or on the FOX Sports Go app. Jon Schriner will provide play-by-play and Rob Simms will handle color commentary.
The match will also feature a Spanish radio broadcast on La Nueva (99.5 FM & 1020 AM in the Omaha area and online: http://player.listenlive.co/49031/es). Â
Live stats for Saturday's contest will be available at Creighton.Statbroadcast.com.
Bluejay fans can stay updated through the Creighton men's soccer Twitter feed: Twitter.com/CreightonMSOC.
Scouting #8 Creighton (9-3-1, 5-0-0 BE)
The Bluejays enter Saturday's match as the BIG EAST standings leader with 15 points (5-0-0).Â
Sven Koenig paces the squad and leads the BIG EAST in goals (7), while nine different Bluejays have scored at least one goal. Creighton leads the conference in scoring with 1.46 goals per contest.Â
In league action, the Bluejays are outscoring the opposition 11-2.
Akeem Ward paces the squad in assists with four, while Younes Boudadi and Yudai Tashiro each have three.Â
Freshman goalkeeper Paul Kruse has started all 13 matches for Creighton and claims a 0.523 goals against average during 1,204 minutes of action, which is the best mark in the BIG EAST and ranks seventh nationally. The Germany native, owns a BIG EAST-best six shutouts, which is tied for 11th in Division I.
Head coach Elmar Bolowich is in his eighth season at the helm of the Bluejays.Â
Scouting Providence (7-5-1, 4-1-0 BIG EAST)
The Friars head to Omaha after falling 1-0 at Brown on Tuesday night.Â
Providence has won its last four BIG EAST matches and not allowed a goal during its last three league contests.Â
Tiago Mendonca leads the team in points with eight from four goals, while Gil Santos claims three goals during four league matches played.Â
Senior goalkeeper Colin Miller owns a 1.11 goals against average and five shutouts. During BIG EAST play, Miller has earned three shutouts -- which is tied with Paul Kruse and Marquette's Luis Barraza for best in the league -- and allowed a total of four goals.Â
Head coach Craig Stewart is in his seventh season at the helm of Providence.
Series History Against Friars
The all-time series between Creighton and Providence is tied at 5-5-1.
The Bluejays and Friars played to a scoreless draw last year at Providence.
Creighton is 3-2-0 at Morrison Stadium against Providence, including 1-1 during BIG EAST regular-season matchups.
Providence claimed two victories in Omaha during the 2016 season. The Friars earned a 1-0 win during the regular-season and a 2-1 victory in the third round of the NCAA Tournament.Â
Pivotal BIG EAST Matchup
Saturday's match at Morrison Stadium features the top two teams in the BIG EAST standings.Â
The Bluejays lead the league with 15 points, while the Friars are a close second with 12.
Creighton clinches a spot in the six-team BIG EAST Championship with a victory on Saturday night.
Additionally, the Bluejays can clinch a top-four seed and be guaranteed at least one home match during the BIG EAST Championship (each match hosted by higher seed) with a victory AND a tie between Xavier and Marquette OR a St. John's loss against DePaul on Saturday. Â
A Providence victory would propel the Friars into a tie with the Bluejays for first place in the league standings.Â
Last Time Out
Creighton allowed a goal during the early stages of the second half and fell to Akron, 1-0, on Tuesday night at FirstEnergy Stadium.
The Bluejays dropped to 9-3-1 overall, while the Zips improved to 6-5-2.
Tuesday's contest marked Creighton's third consecutive road match. The Bluejays ended the stretch 2-1 with BIG EAST victories against St. John's and Xavier -- each by a 3-1 score.
Akron scored the game-winning goal less than five minutes into the second half. During the 49th minute, Morgan Hackworth headed the ball into the back of the net at the far post after receiving a cross from the left flank.
After falling behind, Creighton managed only five shots, including two on goal which were both saved.Â
Akron ended the match with a 14-10 advantage in shots, including 6-3 on goal. The Bluejays tied their season-low for shots attempted as the team entered the night averaging 17.5 shots per match.
Bluejays Nearing Double-Digit Victories
Creighton next win will be its 10th of the season.
The Bluejays have won 10 or more matches five out of Elmar Bolowich's first seven seasons at Creighton.
The Bluejays have qualified for the NCAA Tournament 24 out of the last 26 seasons.Â
The two times Creighton did not make the NCAAs (2009, 2017) were two out of three years since 1990 in which the program failed to reach the 10-win plateau.Â
The Bluejays reached the NCAA tourney and ended the season with only nine victories in 2013.Â
Scoring First, Leading At Half Produces Success
Under the direction of head coach Elmar Bolowich, the Bluejays are 98-9-4 when scoring first, and 65-2-3 when leading at the half.
This season, Creighton is 9-0-0 when scoring first and 3-0-0 when leading at the half.Â
Comparatively, the Bluejays are 15-30-4 when the opposition scores first, 7-18-2 when trailing at halftime, and 41-19-10 when the score is tied after 45 minutes of play (since start of 2011 season).
The Bluejays' last loss when scoring first was last season against Georgetown (Nov. 1, 2017).
Creighton's only two losses when leading at the half with Bolowich as head coach occurred on Sept. 16, 2017 at Butler and Oct. 11, 2016 at Tulsa.Â
Kruse Among Nation's Elite Keepers
Freshman goalkeeper Paul Kruse holds a 0.523 goals against average, which leads the BIG EAST and ranks seventh (7th) nationally.Â
Division I Goals Against Average Leaders (Oct. 18)
Rk. Player (School)     Min    GA GAA
1. Remi Prieur (Saint Mary's) 1,184:11 4 0.304
2. Zach Rowell (UMass Lowell) 815:00 4 0.442
3. James Pyle (North Carolina) 1,211:26 6 0.446
4. Enrique Facusse (Kentucky)1,208:22 6 0.447
5. Colin Shutler (Virginia) 1,120:00 6 0.482
6. Ryan Cretens (UNCW) 1,216:44 7 0.518
7. Paul Kruse (Creighton) 1,114:40 7 0.523
8. T.J. Bush (James Madison) 1,332:24 8 0.540
9. Andrew Thomas (Stanford) 1,151:28 7 0.547
10. Josh Lagudah (Loyola Chicago) 944:48 6 0.572
Brian Holt set Creighton's freshman records for goals against average (0.51 in 1,753 min.) and shutouts (12) in 2008.Â
Holt also holds the Bluejays' single-season records for both goals against average (0.21 in 2,179 min.) and shutouts (17), which were achieved during the 2011 season.Â
Creighton Ranked No. 14 In Latest RPI
Creighton was listed 14th in the official NCAA RPI released on Monday.
The Bluejays are one of two BIG EAST schools in the top 50 of the RPI (Georgetown, 38). The conference has a total of six schools listed in the top 100 (of 206 Division I programs).
Providence is listed at No. 56.
Bluejays Ranked 8th in Coaches Poll
The Creighton men's soccer team moved up to No. 8 in the United Soccer Coaches Poll, the
organization released on Tuesday, Oct. 16.
The Bluejays improved to 9-2-1 overall and 5-0-0 in BIG EAST play with a 3-1 win at Xavier on Friday night. Creighton jumped ahead four spots after being ranked 12th last week and is listed in the top 10 of the poll for the third time this season (Sept. 25, No. 9; Oct. 2, No. 8).Â
Creighton is the lone BIG EAST school listed in this week's Top 25. Georgetown received two votes.Â
Second-Half Scoring
Creighton has scored 14 its last 15 goals during the second half of matches.
The Bluejays scored during the third minute on Oct. 12 against Xavier for the team's first goal in the first half since the 19th minute at South Florida on Sept. 3.
Despite not scoring in the first half during a span of seven consecutive matches, the Bluejays also did not allow a goal during the first half of those contests, and have held opponents to zero goals during all 13 matches this season.
Creighton has allowed only seven goals this season, six during the second half of matches and one during overtime.Â
Trosten Scores First Points, Earns BE Honor
Junior Tor Trosten had a goal and an assist during Friday's victory at Xavier for his first three points in a Bluejay uniform.
Trosten's efforts earned him a spot on this week's BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll.
The Tromso, Norway, native, assisted on Sven Koenig's goal during the third minute and added an insurance score during the 84th.Â
Creighton Seeks To Extend Conference Streak
Creighton opened BIG EAST play with three consecutive shutouts for the first time since 2013.
The Bluejays are also out to their second 5-0-0 start to the BIG EAST schedule. Creighton started 5-0-0 during 2015 before claiming seven (7) league wins.Â
Creighton's best start to BIG EAST play is 6-0-0 in 2015.Â
The Bluejays' last unbeaten conference season was 2012 (5-0-1), the team's last year in the Missouri Valley Conference.Â
Creighton has finished without a loss or tie during regular-season league play only once in program history. The Bluejays went 5-0-0 in 1996 during Missouri Valley Conference play.Â
The Bluejays' best finish during BIG EAST play was in 2014 when Creighton went 7-1-1 to claim the conference regular-season crown.Â
Fortress Morrison
Creighton is 135-24-19 overall at Morrison Stadium, including a 5-1-1 mark this season.
The Bluejays own shutouts during five of their seven home matches this year.
Creighton has never lost consecutive matches at Morrison Stadium during the same season (since 2003).Â
Creighton's loss at Morrison Stadium against No. 17 Virginia Tech to open the 2017 season followed the team's loss at home to end the 2016 campaign (2-1 vs. Providence), marking the first time since 1985 that Creighton had lost consecutive home matches (spanning across two seasons).
The Bluejays are 21-1-1 in their next home match following a home loss (Creighton lost its last home match on Oct. 2 against #5 Denver) at Morrison.Â
Creighton went 7-1-1 during 2017 at home and is 53-9-6 at Morrison Stadium since the start 2013 when the program joined the BIG EAST.Â
Creighton Leads Nation In Average Home Attendance
Creighton enters the weekend (through matches played on Wednesday) leading Division I in average home attendance. The Bluejays have averaged 3,355 fans through their first seven home matches, and play three of their final four regular-season matches at home.Â
2018 Division I Avg. Attendance Leaders (Oct. 18)
Rk. Team Games Total Avg.
1. Creighton 7 23,483 3,355
2. Maryland 6 20,105 3,351
3. UConn 8 26,779 3,347
4. Cal Poly 5 16,385 3,277
5. South Carolina 6 18,198 3,033
6. Wake Forest 10 25,381 2,538
7. Indiana 6 14,972 2,495
8. Grand Canyon 7 17,233 2,462
9. Utah Valley 6 13,293 2,216
10. Portland 11 22,174 2,016
The Bluejays ranked 10th in average home attendance last season with 2,006 fans per contest, marking the 14th straight season Creighton finished in the top 10.
Putting Up Zeros At Home
Creighton allowed its first goal at home this season during the 76th minute against Jacksonville on Tuesday, Sept. 25.
The Bluejays hold a 0.27 goals against average (two goals allowed) and five shutouts through 665 minutes of action at Morrison Stadium during 2018.
The Bluejays held a streak at Morrison Stadium of 615:59 without allowing a goal, which spanned seven matches, including five consecutive shutouts.
The Bluejays did not allow a goal during the first 455 minutes at home this season, and did not allow a goal during the final home match of 2017.Â
The last goal Creighton conceded before last Tuesday night against Jacksonville was during the 20th minute against Xavier on Oct. 14, 2017, the second-to-last home match a year ago.
Creighton was 14:55 away from matching a program record for consecutive home matches without allowing a goal. The Bluejays have claimed six consecutive home shutouts twice
during program history (Oct. 15, 1999-Sept. 2, 2000 and Oct. 26-Nov. 20, 2011).
Dates    Consecutive Home Shutouts
10/15/99-9/2/00 6
10/26/11-11/20/11 6
10/28/17-9/15/17 5
The Bluejays' longest shutout streak at home is 636:26 (Oct. 15-Nov. 27, 2011).Â
Additionally, Creighton posted shutouts during its first four matches of the season at Morrison Stadium for the first time since 2014 when the team also started the season with four straight shutouts at home and did not allow a goal until the 75th minute of its fifth home contest.
The last time Creighton did not allow a goal through its first five home matches of the season was in 2011.Â
Creighton concludes the regular season with three of its final four matches at home.
